title: Loss of angiotensin-converting enzyme 2 leads to impaired glucose homeostasis in mice.
abstract: This study aimed to investigate the role of angiotensin-converting enzyme 2 (ACE2) in regulating glucose homeostasis. Immunohistochemistry was used to investigate ACE2 expression in the pancreas. Glucose tolerance test, insulin secretion test, and insulin tolerance test were performed in age-matched male ACE2 knockout (KO) and wild-type (WT) mice. We found that ACE2 was positively expressed in the pancreas. Male ACE2 KO mice displayed a selective decrease in first-phase insulin secretion in response to glucose and a progressive impairment of glucose tolerance compared with age- and sex-matched WT mice. On the other hand, insulin sensitivity of the peripheral tissue in age-matched ACE2 KO and WT mice showed no difference. These findings suggest that ACE2 might play an important role in glucose homeostasis as well as type 2 diabetes.
authors.affiliation: Department of Endocrinology, Beijing Tongren Hospital, Capital Medical University, Beijing, 100730, China.
authors.forename: Ming-Jia
authors.initials: MJ
authors.lastname: Niu
authors.forename: Jin-Kui
authors.initials: JK
authors.lastname: Yang
authors.forename: Shan-Shan
authors.initials: SS
authors.lastname: Lin
authors.forename: Xiu-Juan
authors.initials: XJ
authors.lastname: Ji
authors.forename: Li-Min
authors.initials: LM
authors.lastname: Guo
mesh_terms: D000085962:Angiotensin-Converting Enzyme 2; D000818:Animals; D001786:Blood Glucose / Q000378:metabolism; D003924:Diabetes Mellitus, Type 2 / Q000235:genetics / Q000378:metabolism; D005260:Female; D017353:Gene Deletion; D005947:Glucose / Q000378:metabolism; D015309:Glucose Clamp Technique; D018149:Glucose Intolerance / Q000235:genetics*; D005951:Glucose Tolerance Test; D006706:Homeostasis / Q000235:genetics; D007328:Insulin / Q000378:metabolism; D007333:Insulin Resistance / Q000235:genetics / Q000502:physiology; D000078790:Insulin Secretion; D008297:Male; D051379:Mice; D008810:Mice, Inbred C57BL; D018345:Mice, Knockout; D007703:Peptidyl-Dipeptidase A / Q000235:genetics*
chemical_list: D001786:Blood Glucose; D007328:Insulin; D007703:Peptidyl-Dipeptidase A; C000705328:Ace2 protein, mouse; D000085962:Angiotensin-Converting Enzyme 2; D005947:Glucose